EMAIL TIPS
Want to become a pro at writing better emails ? I want to share seven easy , but powerful email tips to make emailing better .
According to Statista , 269 billion emails were sent and received every single day in 2017 . And this number is only going up ! How can you become a better emailer ? And why does this matter ? The better you are at email the more likely :
• Your emails will get opened
• You have faster email response rates
• People don ’ t archive or ignore your emails
• You build your professional credibility by sending clear , concise emails
Learning to email well can help you get more done and be more successful .
Here are my top email tips :
EMAIL TIP # 1 : STOP ABUSING THE WORD URGENT
This is URGENT I need it back ASAP . It ’ s SUPER IMPORTANT because I ’ m writing in all caps . When I see URGENT in an email subject , my heart starts to race . I think about actually urgent things like bloodshed or falling off a cliff or YouTube being down – you know really serious things . If you overuse ASAP and URGENT you run the risk of people taking you less seriously when it is actually urgent down the line . Don ’ t be like the boy who cried wolf .
Take-Away : Don ’ t abuse ASAP , URGENT , IMPORTANT unless it is really , really ASAP , URGENT , or IMPORTANT .
EMAIL TIP # 2 : IF IT ’ S LONGER THAN THREE PARAGRAPHS , STOP
Have you ever received an exceptionally long email — you know the ones where you have to scroll and scroll and scroll and they just never end ? Really really long emails are really really tempting to just archive or ignore .
Why ? Something psychological happens with really long emails . If you spent two hours writing me a small novel in your email , I feel bad replying with only two sentences . So , I don ’ t … I literally ignore it in my inbox until the email is no longer relevant OR you call me about it .
Maybe your email should have been a call or meeting in the first place ? If you have a virtual team , it can be incredibly hard to keep emails concise because you can ’ t just pop by someone ’ s office with a question .
Take-Away : If your email is longer than three paragraphs , consider calling . It ’ s easier for both of you !
EMAIL TIP # 3 : START NEW CHAINS
Have you ever got an email where the subject is just filled with forwards and replies ? Or have you ever been on an email chain that is 48 threads long and has nothing to do with the subject or the original question ? Let ’ s stop the madness ! If you are on a chain that no longer relates to the original subject or has gone so far off course that you have no idea where you started , then it ’ s time to start a new chain . Everyone on the thread will thank you . By the way , if you need some email templates to nicely and concisely start new emails you can check out good email templates from Buffer .
Take-Away : Don ’ t let your email chains last forever . A good email should always be retired .
EMAIL TIP # 4 : USE A HIERARCHY OF FACTS
This is my super advanced tip for exceptional email skills . Always put the most important idea up top . At best , people skim their emails . At worst , they don ’ t finish reading them . Don ’ t bury your lead . If you have a big question or a big idea , put it up top for a better chance of someone actually seeing it . This is just one of many email mistakes you can make , but is the most important for increasing your response rate .
Take-Away : Get your big idea across as soon as possible .
EMAIL TIP # 5 : CONTAIN YOUR EMOTION
Emotions can destroy your email credibility . And it can go one of two ways . Overly excited emails can drive people crazy . Quadruple explanation points , five smiley faces and three hearts later , your email cred is at zero . I love excitement , but don ’ t get too excited … especially about emojis . You also want to avoid emotional emailing . This is when you are angry , upset or irritated and you email everyone something a little nasty . I promise you WILL regret it .
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